Best tank shapes common in the USA IMO: (IN order of best to worst... still all good). These have the best surface area in each class. Tanks are one of the cheepest parts of setting up a system. You will spend way more money on food, gravel, thermometers, pumps, digital camera, FISH, and other things. Get the right shape!!! and get the largest thing you can fit into the room (with respect of going over the 75g mark). The only tank you are really getting a deal on is the 10g for cost per gallon, so just get the largest tank you can… If you answer oo but that is too much. get a piggy bank. If you stock good levels of fish (2 “ per gallon) on the larger systems you can start off with pretty cheep filtration.


Fresh Water Best tanks
180 Gallon 72 1/2 x 24 1/2 x 25 5/8
100 Gallon 72 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 19 3/8
120 Gallon 48 1/2 x 24 1/4 x 25 1/2

75 Gallon 48 1/2 x 18 1/2 x 21 3/8

Smallest recomended 40 breeder though low in volume does have nice surface area.
40 Breeder36 3/16 x 18 1/4 x 16 15/16
30 breeder good too but less common I believe.

20 Long 30 1/4 x 12 1/2 x 12 ¾

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I highly suggest getting 2 overflows in any new tank. Even if you are not doing salt water you can put pre-filter sponges in them for your cans or HOB inlets. And, they pull off surface scum. This cost may be more than its worth for many.
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I don't suggest under a 20L for anyone new to the hobby 40 breeder or larger would be best (but not as cheep as the 20L ).

10g are inexpensive and great for sick tanks, but too small to be considered "easy" care.
IF you HAVE to go smaller the 15g normal Long? is ok as well as the 10g, but the 20 High is a waste of space IMO.

55g are not bad tanks... but the price difference is worth having the 75 for surface area and aqua-scaping.

If you are unsure of your floor's strength. stick with a 75 or less. (If your floor can’t handle 1,000 lb spread over 4 feet YOU NEED TO CONDEM THE PREMISIS).

PS Any one know how much pressure the ball of my fat 200 lb man foot puts on the floor boards when I jump up and down?



Any other shapes are inferior And a waist of foot print

This post has been edited by Adrinal: Apr 2 2004, 06:12 PM

A 20 gallon tank is a good size for kids to start with. It's big enough to hold several fish yet it's small enough to manage with ease and isn't too expensive.

Also, don't buy a 40 gallon long unless you really like the extra length. It really isn't very deep or high. Perhaps if you just want some small schooling fish.

I was considering a 29 to use as my main tank instead of the empty 20L I have. The only difference is that the 29 is just 6 inches higher than the 20L. I might use the 20L as a quarantine tank or as a predatory tank - like housing single redfin pike and giving it live feeder fish.

This post has been edited by Itty Bitty Betta: Apr 4 2004, 02:07 PM

same here i was going to buy a 20gal long tank over the weekend.. but then i went with the 29gal.. cause the 20gal and 29gal are the same length they both long.. but the 29gal is 6" taller then the 20gal..

and there was only a 5 dollor diffrence in the price...

I think a 10 gallon is a good size for a beginner. In a way the bigger the tank the more work

Hmmmmm, that's strange because my 29 gallon is 18.5" tall x 30" long

and my 20 gallon is 16" tall x 24" long!

(just measured )

This post has been edited by silver: Jun 3 2004, 04:24 AM

I got a 29 recently for breeding... and now I look at my 5.5 and my 2.5 and think, "Why did I bother?" They seem pointless now that I know what I can do with more.

i just bought a 5 gallon because i wanted a tank in my office but there was no room for a stand. i figured a 5 G was the biggest i coud fit on my desk and when you consider the dixie cups bettas are kept in im sure this will feel like a mansion to him

Silver you have a 20 gallon high thats why

guys, if you want to figure out the gallonage of your tank here's the easiest formula:

L x W x H (in inches) divided by 231 = volume in gallons

ex: my 180g is 72" x 24" x 24" = 41472 / 231 = 179.5

I think you are completly wrong. Why put someone new throught the agany of having to deal with all the problems of a small tank.

Tanks are backwards to what you would think. The new people NEED big tanks. Small tanks are for people who know what they are doing.


IMHO


Monty671

The bigger the better. The 125 fresh I care for is way eaiser than the 55 fresh I care for. The 55 is eaiser than the 20s and 10s, I have had in the past. The only factor is cost....not so much for the tank but the rocks, driftwood, decorations you will want. The cost of that increases with size obviously due to the need for more...I just bought a $30 piece of driftwood for my new 37. I wanted it to be diagonal for the aquascape of the tank and I simply wouldn't settle until I found that perfect piece. The look of a tank, to me, is almost as much fun as the fish.

Something to consider, fish swim left and right, not up and down, long tanks are better in most cases (not all of couse). A 55gal is nice, but so tall light don't make it to the bottom good, especially when the plants start getting near the surface. My fav tank is a 40 long, plants grow well, there's room for fish to swim and school and it's inexpensive. The reason I have a 2 55's is bacuase here in Hawaii a 55 is $75 and a 40 long is $155.

of course it's just my opinion .

This post has been edited by Bryan: Jun 5 2006, 01:41 AM

I would not recommend a 100 Gallon tank but I would recommend a 125 Gallon tank.

My reasoning behind this is simple, cost. I called many places pricing tanks because I wanted to stay at 100 Gallon but get a 6' tank thinking I could save money.

As it turns out every place I called and even online averaged to about a $10.00 difference between a 100 and 125. So, it is more realistic to spend the extra money on the 125 rather than spend $10.00 less and buy a 100.

i'm getting a 90gallon this weekend...the dimensions are 48 long, 18 deep and 24 high. its going to be planted with a sand bottom. I'm so excited !

sand bottem tanks are the way to go for looks cause it is ever canging the bottem never looks same twice (a week or so) but it kinda sucks for cleaning ( i'm always suckuing up sand .....) any opne with a sand bottem tank have a secret on how to save the sand but suck the poo? lol that sounds funnny

If you ask me...DON't get anything less than 20 gallons

10 gallon tanks do work, but as people have said are a lot of work to maintain. I think I am very lucky with my 10 gallon tank in how it manages to remain almost maintenance-free despite the high lighting, CO2 supplementation and high plant loading.

I currently have a 10G and I'm planning on upgrading it to 55G, but I just wanted to know if its better to stick to the "usual" sizes or is it ok to go custom, I know a guy who would simply make IT to any measure I give him.

So what do you guys think, should I get it from the LPT, have it customized, or let my brother put it all together, he has never done it but since he is doing it for his own turtle tank. There might be a good reason on the current sizes that are sold but maybe there isn't any.

btw, here are some sites were you can calculate your tank volume:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/aquarium_sizes.php
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/calculator.php
http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic/tanktech2.asp

This post has been edited by shuhu: May 1 2005, 01:52 AM